Dim Sum in Paris
 

We love dim sum and have eaten this Chinese breakfast/brunch in many different cities. Anyone know a good Chinese restaurant for dim sum in Paris? Thanks, Lily

Hi

sad to say, I've not been impressed with oriental food I've tried in France.

But good luck, anyway !

Peter

I am Chinese and ventured to Paris Chinatown, which is past Place d'Italie (down at the bottom of the metro map there). We didn't have dim sum, but the Chinese food there was really good! I'm sure there must be a dim sum restaurant there.

I second Melissa's opinion about Paris' Chinese restaurants in Chinatown (13th dist.). There are many and most are very good! In fact, quite a few restaurants offer on menu something like "a la vapeur" generally meaning steamed items so those are most likely dim sum items. I'm sure there must be places in Chinatown that do have dim sum specifically.

This restaurant has some good comments (in French) on the web: New Nioulaville, 32-34 , Rue de l'Orillon, 75011 Paris

and here is a too-too article about dim sum:

http://www.bparis.com/articles.php?articleId=283

Thanks everyone. I'll let you know what we find there. Lily

Go to Rue Cler where they have a couple of Asian take-out restaurants and the dishes were dim-sum style. We never tried them (too full on pastries), but they look great and people were gobbling them up. Inexpensive, too.
MK

The 13th district is called Chinatown & its full of little places that serve dim sum, just follow your nose. But the current place where the shee-shee crowd goes is called Dave, and its on blvd Richelieu. Very spendy & full of models & rock stars.

I think my too-too article was about Dave. Sounded like something Degas would write.

Nah, Sue. Degas would have mentioned the aroma of French cigarettes permeating the room, and how he lit up a 7 cent cigar to let them know what a real man smokes.

All Chinese restaurants and takeaways in Paris serve a limited range of dim-sum type steamed dumplings (often called "raviolis", "croissants" or "bouchées" depending on the shape). The choice is usually pretty standard, with prawn or pork filling. Also "rouleaux de printemps" - rolls filled with vegetables and prawns and sometimes chicken, served cold and eaten with lettuce leaves. Nems, which are fried rolls with a meat and vegetable filling, and "paté impérial" - a large fried roll which resembles most closely what I (as a Brit) would call a spring roll.

There are some excellent Chinese restaurants in the 13th arrondissement as has been mentioned, but on the whole most Chinese restaurants and takeaway places don't make their dim sum, they simply buy them frozen. I imagine that some of the posher places would make their own, however.

Indeed, I have just happened upon an article about a place called Chez Vong, Paris's oldest Chinese restaurant, which specialises in dim sum. Never been there or even heard of it myself, but it sounds promising. Here's the link: http://www.tdctrade.com/mne/food/011203.htm

"Who in the name of the great Bambino would go to Italy and get a hamburger?"

On a different, but related note - we've had wonderful Vietnamese meals in Paris on several occasions. Because of France's colonial history in Indo-China, there is a well established culinary link between the two and some really good restaurants in Paris to prove it. Not only is the food delicious - it also tends to be relatively inexpensive (by Paris standards.)

If you haven't had Vietnamese food - you will probably like it if you like Chinese food. Similar, but very fresh and with some rather more exotic ingredients (lemongrass, hot chilis, cilantro, lots of fish...)Often a bit lighter too. There are even some common dishes that are a bit like dim sum - though not called that. Small rolls,dumplings,salads, sates, etc. (Try especially the kind of rolls that are wrapped in rice paper and stuffed with shrimp, fresh mint,cucumber, fresh lime juice, rice vermicelli...delicious.)

Paris "Chinatown" is only about 25-30 years and was founded by the "boat people" refugees from SE Asia. Thus, the recommendation to find a good and relatively inexpensive Vietnamese restaurant in "Chinatown" is not all that strange.
Paris Chinatown is now the largest on the continent and you will find, walking down its streets, that there is a diversity of people shopping there: blacks from "deepest" Africa, from Ethiopia, also Arabs, also SE Asians, mostly from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, as well as native Parisians.

There is also a second "Chinatown" at/near Belleville, where I haven't been, but am told that it is more upscale.

Here are two websites:
chinatownfrance.com - which is in French and while interesting, does not yield much in terms of restaurants.

A better site is:
rendezvousFrance.com/chine.html (in English) - which has a list of a number of "Chinese" restaurants listed, with a small history or intro to each restaurant. This should help you in your search.

It appears that the gourmets of the world have benefitted a great deal from the exodus of the boat people from SE Asia, as we, here in the Bay Area, have now some wonderful Asian restaurants. I can remember a day when Chinese food meant "chop suey" [shudder!] So, the restaurants in Paris started by the SE Asians should be of excellent quality as well.

However, Chinese food anywhere on the continent is not cheap - not by Bay Area standards, so be warned. As Rufus has said, why seek a hamburger... yes, I would not seek out a Chinese restaurant on the continent unless it is for a very good reason, not while there are cheaper and better alternatives on the North American continent or in Asia. However, here's assuming that Lily has good reasons...

The best way I've found is to ask around in Chinatown itself - e.g., in Paris,go into Tang Freres, the big grocery store, and just politely ask around for a "real" dim sum house. Or ask the person where he/she would go for dim sum. Emphasize that you don't want a tourist place, but the "real" thing, where the Chinese go. The locals usually know where the great cooks have migrated to - if the person is not too busy shopping, you might just get more information than you need!

Happy hunting!